Middle East

Diplomacy to the Rescue

By Nicholas Burns

Colin Powell, America’s premier soldier-statesman, put it best. Diplomats, he said, are “the first line of offense of America’s foreign policy.” With his military background, Powell understood better than most that diplomacy has always been an important, if not vital, American strength in dealing with a dangerous and unpredictable world.

Denmark and Norway Offer to Transport Chemical Weapons Out of Syria

By Foreign Ministry of Norway

Based on decisions by the United Nations Security Council and the OPCW, Norway and Denmark have agreed to offer a joint contribution to the transportation of chemical warfare agents out of Syria.

Anarchy at Door, West Starts to Rebuild Libyan Army

By Patrick Markey, Reuters

Turkey, Italy, and Britain are leading the way with promises to train around 8,000 troops and police in skills from infantry basics to forensics. Other recruits are graduating from programs in Jordan.

US Plan for New, Western-Trained Libyan Force Faces Obstacles

By Abigail Hauslohner and Karen DeYoung, Washington Post

At the request of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan, the United States, Britain and Italy have agreed to train 5,000 to 8,000 troops, many of whom will be drawn from existing militias.

Iran Deal Won’t Be a Repeat of North Korea

By Barbara Slavin

In the aftermath of the Geneva accords constraining Iran’s nuclear program, some critics of the deal have compared it to the 1994 Agreed Framework with North Korea that fell apart in 2002 and ended with the North building and testing nuclear weapons. This criticism ignores major differences between Iran – a large, influential country that relies […]

Nine US Diplomats See Interim Deal as Good for Israel

By Nicholas Burns

The interim deal with Iran on its nuclear program has prompted some legitimate questions about whether such a deal is in the interest of Israel, a vital US ally. I joined eight other former American ambassadors to Israel and former under secretaries of State in writing a letter that answers that question: We believe the […]

Rags and Tatters: The Moments Egypt’s Revolution Forgot

Rags and Tatters opens to a scene of shaky cell phone footage inside an Egyptian prison in 2011. You hear the voice of a man saying, “Please film this,” as you prepare to launch into an hour-and-a-half of moments that Egypt’s revolution forgot. 

Is International Mediation the Way Out of Tunisia’s Political Conflict?

By Bassem Bouguerra & Duncan Pickard

Tunisia is in the midst of the most intractable political conflict since the 2011 revolution. The debate pits the ruling Islamic party, Ennahda, against a coalition of secular forces led by Nidaa Tunis, an opposition party founded in 2012.

Lavrov Asks If NATO Planning to ‘Put Itself in Ukraine?’

By State Department

There was also a discussion of Ukraine initiated by Foreign Minister Lavrov reacting to the NATO public statement yesterday of support for the wishes for the Ukrainian people, asking whether NATO was planning to put itself in Ukraine.

The Coming Elections: Parliamentary or Presidential First?

By Yussef Auf

With the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi on July 3, Egypt entered a new transitional phase, the country’s third in recent years. Driven by Morsi’s policies since assuming power, a grassroots movement that eventually swelled to millions calling for his outright removal had in fact begun with a different demand: early presidential elections. Elections, they […]